Scottish Government biodiversity duty report 2021-2023

12. Health Directorate

12.1 Introductory information

NHS Facilities and Environmental Sustainability Unit have responsibility for two areas that have a particular environmental relevance:

• NHS estate development policy;
• NHS Scotland’s environmental sustainability and net-zero plans.

The NHS Scotland climate emergency and sustainability strategy: 2022-2026 sets out plans for NHS Scotland to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and impact on the environment, adapt to climate change and to better contribute to the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

The Sustainable Buildings & Land part of our strategy focuses on the actions we will take to help create truly sustainable NHS buildings and land. It covers the following topics:

• reducing our building greenhouse gas emissions;
• adapting our estate to climate change impacts;
• embedding good environmental stewardship of our services, buildings and infrastructure assets;
• reducing our waste and managing it better;
• valuing, protecting and managing our greenspace;
• the sustainable future development of our NHS healthcare estate.

NHS Scotland is a custodian of significant areas of greenspace and is committed to working with our local communities and other partners to develop and manage this public asset in a way which improves public health, reduces health inequalities and helps to address biodiversity loss and the climate emergency.

12.2 Actions to protect and enhance biodiversity

At present there is an annual budget of £300,000 per annum for NHS Scotland greenspace funding projects. The money is for seed funding and covers a range of projects which directly or indirectly support biodiversity. These include gardens and wildlife areas planted with natural flora which are for the use of staff, patients and sometimes also the local community.

For example as well as helping with net zero mitigation and adaptation, the introduction of flowering perennials, flowering evergreen shrubs that produce berries for birds and an assortment of evergreen and deciduous trees help bring wildlife into NHS sites, therefore adding immeasurably to the biodiversity of the area.

Work is also underway to map out the habitat types within the NHS estate so that the best use can be made of the estate in terms of climate change mitigation and adaptation, biodiversity, the work of the NHS and enhancing the experience of the sites for staff, patients, visitors and members of the local community.

12.3 Mainstreaming biodiversity

This is in development, and will be supported by the work to map out the NHS estate habitats, which should allow for a more whole systems approach to estate management that will include enhancing biodiversity and working with nature intelligently. This includes, for example, sustainable drainage and flood protection, using trees for their cooling effects on summer temperatures, and capturing heat from and purifying water before it leaves hospital laundry systems and enters the drainage system.

12.4 Nature-based solutions, climate change and biodiversity

12.4.1 Integration of biodiversity and climate change

As mentioned above, we are working to tackle some of the problems hospitals and health centres face through nature based solutions, such as using trees to mitigate the effects of summer temperatures, using trees and other vegetation - along with good design - to reduce flood risks. This will also involve the NHS managing their sites in a way that reduces the downstream impact they have, such as waste water which can have an impact on native fauna and flora because of its heat or/and content.

More generally, our work with the NHS is focussed on the triple crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, not simply on climate change.

12.4.2 Climate change related challenges over the next three years

Our main challenge is understanding the likely effects of climate change on a region by region and site by site basis. We can then have a better idea of how to work with nature so that we can support biodiversity and natural systems can support us. Our habitat mapping work can help with this, but we also need to understand future climate scenarios to understand how best to focus our nature based work.

12.5 Public engagement and workforce development

12.5.1 Public engagement

Many of these activities will be led by health boards themselves, rather than this Unit, but we are aware of and encourage public engagement.

12.5.2 Workforce development

As a Scottish Government Unit we work in collaboration with NHS Assure, who provide training across the NHS on sustainability related issues.

12.5.3 Opportunities for staff to take practical action

We are a very small team but have in person supported projects where possible, for example by joining in at the launch of hospital biodiversity gardens and similar events.

12.6 Research and monitoring

12.6.1 Research activities

As mentioned above we are working to map out habitat on NHS estates. We have also encouraged health boards to develop net zero route maps and climate change adaptation plans, which should help us understand the role that biodiversity can play in supporting these objectives.

12.6.2 Monitoring activities

Projects we have funded will be monitored and we are considering how best to monitor the effects of climate change over time, for example the effects of increased heat or flooding.

12.7 Biodiversity highlights and challenges

12.7.1 Main achievements

Greenspace projects that enhance biodiversity and support staff and patients at NHS sites.

12.7.2 Main challenges in the next three years

Developing an approach for NHS sites to work within the wider ecosystem and nature based context, which means supporting collaboration and partnership working in addition to habitat mapping and research. All of this is underway and Boards themselves will have good examples to give. Our challenge is expanding it into a more general ‘business-as-usual’ approach. In other words normalising thinking about biodiversity and nature based solutions as part of the standard decision making approach to NHS Scotland estates and associated environments.